15 Comments

China has been trying to dethrone the dollar as the world's currency. Why would the Republicans be so stupid as to give them the very ammunition that China needs to do just that?

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Agree 100%, hope media does not do the usual misrepresentation of important issues, but I am certain they will.

I would quibble w one statement:

"Republicans represent one half of one of the three branches of government. In other words, the public has awarded the Republicans with a little less than 17 percent of political power. "

Unfortunately they are in firm control of the US Supreme Court, which means they control the final say on any lower court rulings....so in effect they have control over half of the US government.

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Negotiations only work when both sides come to the table in good faith. The Republican party, as you pointed out, has no good faith. The Republicans in the House want to damage and weaken the Federal government. Cutting Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid are not options. These are not people you can negotiate with and Manchin knows this but pretends otherwise so he can be on TV.

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I just happened to see a quote pulled from an interview with Jason Chaffetz, a former GOP congressman (and irresponsible yahoo) who was there for the previous debt ceiling crises. He said of his fellow feckless dolts, “Of course we were ready to put the U. S. in default…”

So the Dems should realize that’s the true mindset of the current MAGA GOP and start the ball rolling on every potential alternative, including the Discharge Petition, the platinum coin, and the Public Debt Clause of the 14th Amendment.

I know we have far smarter people than I in the Dem leadership, and they hardly need to hear from me, but their tendency to wait until the last minute scares me. And on this matter, waiting will cost us all a lot of money. Just getting too close to default last time cost us in stock market performance, interest rates, hiring rate, and government trust and credibility.

BTW Dan, tried to do my part a couple of weeks ago, but “Yes We Dan” hoodies were only in Small.

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Never count on McCarthy's 'good faith.'

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Excellent explainer, and precise description of the current situation. Here's hoping the administration is able to shape the narrative in the media.

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Thank you for this. "You don't negotiate with terrorists." Exactly. Also appreciate your use of the word "extort." Telling it like it is!

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Hear! Hear! (or is it Here? Here?) Either way Dan nailed it. Again.

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I read today that Biden will in fact be meeting with McCarthy to discuss the debt ceiling and other issues. Don’t know whether this might be considered negotiating, but it’s something . . .

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Good job, and I'm passing it along, but I must say how much I *loved* this reference to Manchin’s "rudimentary, deeply naive understanding of national politics in the Trump era." What a wonderfully accurate but still reasonably polite way of saying the guy's a jackass, or a troglodyte, or a fool.

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Sing it sister. Sing it loud and often. No other way.

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The minority of a minority (Terrorists) are bound and determined to destroy the central government. And they don't care who suffers. They fully intend to become very rich in the process. Furthermore, those who are funding this madness are interested in returning to pre-civil war federal government where they will become enormously rich and whence comes the promise to make the elected Terrorists wealthy. Finally, the same elites are willing to use violence to achieve these ends. Witness their continued association with the rabble who are more than willing to get their own "white male" way back to slave times with guns where their ancestors were paid bounties to run down escapees. This is a group of elites working with the Mafia. There is a kind of "understanding" between the two. This is not going to change. It's been that way for a very long time.

Certainly those in the White House are aware of this and other related power plays.

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Biden has agreed to meet with McCarthy on Wednesday. Agreed to MEET, not negotiate. He'll probably say something to that effect, then close the meeting.

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Spot on.

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